


Nightmares

by BlueBird1199



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: F/M, Pre-Relationship, also known aa "I have feelings for you but I'm afraid to lose another person I love"
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-10-12 03:33:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10481133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueBird1199/pseuds/BlueBird1199
Summary: Most of the crew had experienced being woken up at least once by Skye’s yelling in the middle of the night, but Jaal had joined during a long, albeit temporarily, break in nightmares. She wonders if Angara have nightmares, or how sleep even works for them. She’s never thought to ask before.This is the first in a collection of fics detailing Jaal and Skye's relationship as it grows and changes.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first time writing in a really long time. Hope you like it, let me know if it's terrible tho. Also maybe leave a comment with your thoughts? Cause seriously I crave feedback.

Nightmares

The scene is familiar, but she can't quite place why. It was a new planet; habitat 7 is what they called it.

“It's definitely gonna need a better name..” Skye had joked to her squad mate, Liam, before they’d set foot on the planet.

They were about to make history, her and dad would fix the atmosphere and their new life in andromeda would really begin, and then Scott would be up in a few days and she could tease him all about how she fixed the planet while he was busy napping.

“God, I can't wait to rub it in his face. Finally something I did first.” Skye thought to herself as she exited the gate, staring in wonder up at the changes occurring.

Her father stepped up beside her, and she grinned in an almost childlike excitement.

She turned to him, smile still wide. “Dad.. it's working! You did it!” She said, a small laugh escaping her throat near the end. In her entire life she'd only dreamed of being apart of something so big, so important, and now that dream was a reality.

The sky was beautiful, and reminded her of the one she left behind on earth, aside from the floating rocks of course. She wondered for a brief moment what it would be like to climb one. Everything is so amazing and new, so many things to see and accomplish.

“There's hope atleast.” Her father said, his eyes also drifting upwards in a brief moment of awe. A thin but warm smile crept across him face.

She’d rarely seen him smile like this before, on birthdays and award ceremonies, and a few other times. That smile that showed nothing but genuine love and pride for the person before him. She hadn’t seen it for a long time, not since before mom had gotten sick. He became an even more distant person during that time, and she'd worried he’d never return from that state.

“That's all anyone back on the ark is looking for,” She agreed. “Hope that it’ll all work out.”

After a brief pause her father sighed and returned to his usual stern demeanor, despite the slight upturn at the corners of his mouth.

“Well, not if we stand around looking at sunsets. Let's get back to the shuttle and-“ her father was suddenly cut off.

A deep rumbling startled them both and they turned to see a cloud of dust and electrical energy rush towards them. They didn’t have time to get out of its way, and it knocked them both off their feet. Skye tumbled and couldn't see what happened but her heart was suddenly seized with panic. She felt her feet slide over the edge of the platform and she knew she was going over; hit the ground with a crunch and it would be over.

The rest of her body skidded over the edge and she just managed to grip the platform at the last second, and she dangled helplessly; her father no where in sight.

Her victory was short lived as she tried to pull herself up, just in time for a giant chunk of debris to slam into her body full force and send her flying. She didn't feel herself hit the ground.

What she did feel was the air being sucked from her lungs as her eyes opened, vision blurry. Her helmet was broken; her oxygen supply was cut off. In minutes she’d be dead.

“No no no no no… not now..” she thought as real fear crept its way into her mind.

She’d only just begun, and now she was going to suffocate to death on a planet she’d only just gotten to see? Not if she could help it.

She struggled to her knees, one hand clasped around her throats as if to try to hold the oxygen in. A figure appeared out of the dust cloud, dark space suit and shiny helmet glinting in the alien sunlight. She recognized her fathers armor and reached out to him, begging silently for help.

Her vision was fading fast, but she could still here his voice.

“Repeat! We need an emergency extraction now!” His voice was desperate as he stared down at his dying daughter.

She heard another familiar voice, Lieutenant Cora Harper, responded from his comm.

“We’re spinning up the shuttle now! ETA is three, maybe four minutes!” She replied, unaware of the current situation.

“We don't have that long..” Alec Ryder replied, he knew his daughter had seconds left before it was to late.

Seemingly without a second thought he knelt down and slid the broken helmet off her head, a small strand of bright blue hair peeking out from her undersuit. She watched in a mix of confusion and shock as he then pulled his own helmet off and promptly placed it on her head. He pressed the oxygen release button in order to finally allow her to breath and placed both hands on her shoulders.

“Deep.. breaths..” He gasped out, already having trouble breathing.

“No..! Dad no wait!” She yells before her vision finally goes dark.

“DAD! DON’T GO! PLEASE NO COME BACK!” She hears herself screaming.

She feels hands on her shoulders, shaking and pulling her out of her slumber. Bolting upright, her eyes finally open for real, she sees Cora standing over her, one hand still firmly gripping her arm.

Skye’s breathing is ragged and hard, as if she's back on habitat 7 trying to catch her breath. Her hands are clammy and shaky as she reaches up to brush the hair from her sweat covered forehead.

“Ryder, it's ok, you’re on the Tempest, deep breaths.” Cora says, a repeated statement at this point.

It’s become a routine now. The nightmares, or flashbacks, or whatever they are come late at night. Eventually she becomes loud enough in her yelling and crying that one of the crew will come up to her quarters to wake her, usually Cora or PeeBee. Once a very tired and cranky Drack had come banging on her door in order to wake her. He wasn't much help when it came to calming her down though.

“Cora.. I'm ok.. just another nightmare…” She assures her friend. She can tell by the doubtful look that Cora is giving her that she's not going to let her off easy this time.

“Ryder you’re not okay. You need to go talk to Dr. Lexi about-” Cora’s lecture is cut short by the small group that suddenly bursts into the room.

Vetra, Liam, and to Skye’s surprise, Jaal all come rushing into the room, Vetra wielding a pistol. Vetra and Liam quickly relax when they see it's just Ryder sitting alone in her bed and Cora standing over her like a displeased mother.

“Again Skye? I thought they'd finally stopped.” Vetra says, a little more harsh than she meant for it sound, and holsters the gun.

Jaal however still seemed to be on alert, slightly confused and unsure of what exactly had happened.

Most of the crew had experienced being woken up at least once by Skye’s yelling in the middle of the night, but Jaal had joined during a long, albeit temporarily, break in nightmares. She wonders if Angara have nightmares, or how sleep even works for them. She’s never thought to ask before.

“What happened? Was there an intruder?” Jaal asks and steps further into the room-and closer to her, she thinks- as if scanning for something out of place. If it weren't for the tears and redness of her cheeks already, the blush creeping up her face would be embarrassing.

“Um.. no. I'm fine.” She explains as she swings her feet over the side of the bed to stand. “It was just a nightmare. Sometimes I have them and someone will have to come wake me up, but other than that everything's fine.”

He relaxes, but continues moving closer to stand slightly behind Cora. She watches him for a second; waiting for him to speak but Cora pipes up first.

“She’s not fine,” She begins and turns to face Skye again. “These reoccurring nightmares aren't stopping, and they're going to start affecting you out in the field if you don't get help.”

The words are stern and impatient, but Skye knows they're coming from a place of concern. The first few times someone had come to wake her, Skye had thrown punches in her sleep and ended up giving Suvi a bloody nose.

“You’re right… I’ll go talk to Lexi in the morning.” She sighs, and Cora pats her on the shoulder.

Liam clears his throat.

“Well if there aren't any Kett ninjas or giant bugs, I'm going back to bed. Night guys.” He yawns and turns to head out the door.

Vetra and Cora give each other a nod and follow him, ready to return to their rooms. Jaal however watches them go, and when they're finally back down the hall he steps closer to her. At this point she's very much aware of the fact that they're both alone, in her room, and her cheeks grow even hotter.

“Would you like to.. talk about it? I know speaking about these things can help sometimes.” He asks carefully, as if he's trying not to startle her.

Skye considers it. He's kind and warm and genuinely cares about her wellbeing, but she's never been one for dumping her issues on others. She also worries what it would mean for their.. current relationship. When you talk to someone like that, when you care about them like that, it means they're special to you.

Yes, she thinks, he's very special to her, she's even told him before. Though she can't bring herself to say it, there's been a growing attraction between the two. The awkward flirting, the blushing, the.. everything. Every time she sees him, speaks to him, or even thinks about him, her heart starts fluttering, she imagines what it would be like to reach up and wrap her arms around him and never let go.

It’s everything about him that makes her feel safe and comfortable. The deep hum in his voice, the way he towers over her without seeming the least bit threatening. The softness to his gaze when she catches him staring at her, and his beautiful blue eyes that seem as deep as galaxies themselves.

“Thank you, Jaal, but I really just want to be alone now. Maybe another time.” She says, her voice low and quiet.

Truthfully, she'd love nothing more than for them to sit down on her bed and talk for hours about her fears, to have him comfort her and ease her mind. But that would be pushing things too far. She's afraid that having someone else so.. close, would only result in more heartbreak.

Her parents are dead, her brother’s in a coma and still hasn't woken up. Why love someone else only to have them snatched away too?

Jaal hesitates for a moment and lifts a hand towards her.

They've shared several... more intimate moments-a few hugs that were slightly too long, one time when he’d tripped and knocked her down and landed on top of her; that one had earned a long whistle and a teasing ‘geez, get a room guys!’ from PeeBee-but until now those had ended with one of them chuckling or a joke and breaking the seriousness. But there was no laughter, or awkward flirting this time.

His hand reaches up and brushes a strand of hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear. His touch is warm and soft, familiar in a way. She closes her eyes for a brief moment as his fingers trace the side of her cheek.

“Alright.. though I'm here when you need me.” He finally says, and slowly lowers his hand. She nods in acknowledgement, says a quick good night, and moves to return to her bed.

He also turns to leave but stops in the doorway, giving her one last look, almost longing she thinks, his expression still gentle and caring.

“I worry about you. You are strong, and confident, and many other things, But that does not mean you have hide your pain.” He speaks softly again, as if he’s treading carefully with his words.

She gives him a grateful smile, small but still there.

“Thanks Jaal. I'm.. really glad you’re here. I mean I'm not glad that you’re in my room, well I am but-” She's tripping over her words, and he chuckles.

“I know Ryder. I enjoy being here, with you, very much as well. Good night.” He says, his voice more lighthearted than before.

“Ah, good night Jaal.” She sighs. When the room is finally empty she flops back onto her bed, staring at the ceiling.

She doesn’t try to sleep, for fear the nightmares will return and she’ll wake up the crew again. Instead she talks to her brother. He’s not really there of course, but it helps. She tells him about her friends, about her recent missions. She also tells him about the beautiful man she's developing feelings for.

“Yeah I haven't really brought it up yet.. y’know I've never been good at this stuff...”

If he were here right now, he'd probably quote some corny line from a movie, like ‘two souls, at one point separated by time and space, would come together to find love’, and she'd laugh and give him a playful punch in the shoulder.

But he's not there, and she's alone in the dark, in her room.

“Scott.. I don't know what I'm doing. I’ve already lost mom and dad, and I'm scared I'm gonna lose you too. Would it really be a bad idea to fall in love?” She asks out loud, dragging both hands down her face as if it would clear her mind.

She doubts herself, goes back and forth on the matter until she can barely keep her eyes open and SAM reminds her she needs sleep.

“Ryder, I detect unhealthy levels of exhaustion and stress. I suggest you lay down and attempt to sleep.” He says, concern somehow making its way into the electronic voice.

He's right of course, but she still hesitates for a moment, unsure if she’d rather sleep than avoid the possible nightmares.

“Ryder, for your own personal wellbeing, please lay down and try to sleep.” He urges her again.

With a defeated sign she slowly sinks back down so her head rests on the pillow and closes her eyes.

“Ok Sam, I’m trying. If it happens again can you get PeeBee for me?” She asks, knowing the response will be yes.

“Of course Ryder. Good night.” His voice is already starting to drift away, she's so tired.

She makes one last mental note before letting sleep take her. Tomorrow after seeing Dr. Lexi she’ll head over to try linking up with brother again, so she can talk to him for real.

 


End file.
